Start-up Time

[geoffism]

I didin't seem to have this problem with my last TiPB, but the start-up time of my newer PB (Rev D) seems to be getting longer and longer. I feel like I am overlooking something very basic. I manage my fonts pretty well (ATM) and haven't added any new software in the last couple months.

Thoughts? Thanks-

 

[mklos]

If you could give some more specs like CPU speed and RAM amount that would be more helpful.

Anything under 256MB now days is not enough. Even 256MB can be minimum now days.

 

[yellow]

If you could give some more specs like CPU speed and RAM amount that would be more helpful.

And what OS are you running? I'm guessing OS9, as (AFAIK) there's no ATM for OS X?

 

[mkrishnan]

And what OS are you running? I'm guessing OS9, as (AFAIK) there's no ATM for OS X?

Hmmmm...in that case, what kind of Powerbook is it a rev. D of?

You're going to get it sooner or later in this thread, so sorry for being the one to bust it out. But the standard recommendation is... you shouldn't need to boot a Mac more than once every two or three weeks, so why do you care? Is there a reason it can't be put to sleep?

Do you use filevault, how full is your hard drive? What kind of network connection are you on? Have you tried turning off the option to automatically update date/time? Some people have reported long boot times when network options cause this to have to go through a timeout during boot when the computer tries to update its time....

 

[geoffism]

The specs

I had a mental lapse... ATM was on the old machine. Using crappy fontbook at the moment (any thoughts on that are welcomed).

Anyway, specs on the Powerbook - 15", 1.67, 1G RAM. Got it new Feb '05. I run basic design suite stuff - Photoshop, AI, DW, Flash.

I shut down every night. Is that a no-no? Should that make a difference? This bitch runs a little hot every now and then.

 

[mkrishnan]

I shut down every night. Is that a no-no? Should that make a difference? This bitch runs a little hot every now and then.

Not in the sense that this problem could be caused by shutting down so frequently, no. I don't think the two should be closely related. But at the same time, putting the computer to sleep every night should get it cooled back down. If it's hot when you wake it from sleep after a night being asleep, I think something *is* wrong.

I don't think fontbook should be causing you trouble in itself, either. Unless you have corrupted fonts, or multiple installed fonts with the same names, or have overwritten system fonts, etc....

 

[geoffism]

Just a couple thoughts

I was just trying list out some things that I know people have spoken about that slow down the boot up. Fonts, software, etc...

It takes about a minute or so to "go". Basically, you are saying, that I should just sleep it instead? Especially if I am just running out for the afternoon?

BTW - it's never hot after sleeping it. Just gets hot from typical use.

 

[yellow]

Sleep is just fine, that's what it's there for.. and it cuts down boot time.. and a minute of boot time really isn't that bad. Where is the slowness in boot? At the gray screen with the spinning wheel? At the system load? Are you using auto-login? Lots more details needed..

 

[geoffism]

Sleep is just fine, that's what it's there for.. and it cuts down boot time.. and a minute of boot time really isn't that bad. Where is the slowness in boot? At the gray screen with the spinning wheel? At the system load? Are you using auto-login? Lots more details needed..

Thanks for your help.
Yes - at the gray screen. The wheel just seems to go round and round and round. And yes, using auto login (I'm on a home wireless network). I guess the biggest concern, and trying to be proactive about this, is that recently, my startup was like 30 secs or so. Maybe I'm just impatient. Don't know if there is somehting irregular going on here and if there is somehting that I should do or some file I should clean out. THANKS!!

 

[yellow]

Ah.. well the whirling wheel screen is up during the boot processes' fsck (file system check), so constant whirling could indicate corruption on the hard drive, or a hard drive problem.

I suggest booting from the installer DVD that came with the laptop and opening Disk Utility and using First Aid to "Repair Disk" (not "Repair Permissions", a common mistake made when people get in there), as well as verify the S.M.A.R.T. status of the drive..

 

[geoffism]

I'll give it a whirl

Thanks. Good suggestion. I don't have to shut down anytime soon, but I'll choke it when I get a break.

-gf